Birmingham Wheels Park is to close after the city council won funding to regenerate the area
Birmingham’s biggest racing venue is to shut its doors for the final time tonight after a year-long eviction battle.
Birmingham Wheels Park, which has operated on council-owned land for nearly 40 years in Saltley, will close for the last time tonight (Sunday 31st October).
It’s after Birmingham City Council, which owns the land, was awarded more than £17 million in Government funding to regenerate the area.
The money was awarded as part of the Government’s Levelling Up fund.
Racing bosses have fought a prolonged battle to stay at the Bordesley Green site.
Mark Bond, Managing director of Birmingham Wheels Park, said: "After 40 years of being here, we think it's deeply tragic that this is happening. It's the biggest leisure and sport area in Birmingham size wise and hundreds of thousands young people use it every year.
"There is a massive concern about street racing and this park has done more for street racing than anyone else - it will be chaos on the streets and we're all about reaching out to a young demographic that's difficult to reach.
He concluded: "This won't be the end of us. We will be continually pushing for Birmingham Wheels to reopen."
City Council bosses initially planned to take back control of the land in January 2020 in order to allow redevelopment work to begin.
But The Wheels was given a temporary stay of execution and allowed to stay until the end of this month while a replacement location was found.
The search failed, and now city council officials say the land must be cleared.
A spokesperson for the authority said the council would continue to work with Birmingham Wheels to find an alternative venue.
They said: “We are currently working with the lessee and their licensees to facilitate access to the site after 1 November so that they can remove their goods and equipment safely. This is not an extension to the interim lease.
“The redevelopment of the Birmingham Wheels site, as a significant employment site – as part of the Bordesley Park Area Action Plan – will help create thousands of jobs and reset the economy in East Birmingham.
“Work is proposed to be undertaken early next year, which will affect large areas of the site, so it will not be possible to further extend the current lease.”
The government announced the site was one of the three successful bids for the Levelling Up fund. The A457 Dudley Road Improvements and the Moseley Road Baths and Balsall Heath Library will also receive funding.
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